MASTER LANGUAGE OF ENJOYMENT AT ROMANO'S.

Byline: Larry Lipson Daily News Restaurant Critic

It may be the hottest new restaurant in the Conejo Valley right now.

Romano's Macaroni Grill, the first one in this area of an 80-location national chain, has taken the Westlake Village-Thousand Oaks area by storm.

Why is it so popular when there are oodles of good Italian restaurants around?

Well, a lot of it can be attributed to its ``sizzle,'' or what might be termed carefully conceived flair.

Like the moment you enter the front door, your nose picks up a garlicky scent that in no time sets the taste buds a-twitching.

There are display cases and assemblages of food at the entrance that are so inviting they also kick start the salivation process.

Once into the bustling dining room you become part of a phantasmagoric food scene that attacks all the senses, particularly the olfactory ones, with Macaroni's open kitchen spewing tempting odors, with mini-mountains of engagingly colorful ingredients piled on platters being rushed to the tables, plus more food displays in the center of the room and rows of jug wines on each side. You can hardly wait to grab something off a plate and begin munching.

Your needs are answered promptly when seated. A staffer immediately brings a steaming foccaccia loaf and pour olive oil onto a plate and pepper it up, making it ready for dipping.

Do you want to learn how to speak ``menu Italian''? In the restrooms there's a language-teaching tape constantly being played. (It also goes on when you're put on hold when calling the restaurant.)

Do you want to draw food? They don't miss a bet here. You get crayons.

That staffer who brought you the bread and poured the olive oil may inscribe a crayoned name on the table when introducing himself or herself.

So, doodlers take note: The butcher block paper atop the table allows for crayoning by child diners, adult diners and members of the waiting staff.

How about that old Italian custom, the sipping of wine with food?

The house jug wine by the gallon is placed on the table if you wish, and you may pour it accordingly. You just tell the waiter or waitress at the end of your meal how many glasses ($2.95 each) you've consumed.

Incidentally, this stuff is probably so inexpensive for them that the house can't lose. Even if you lie.

In the evening there is usually a young operatic soprano ready to entertain you personally at your table. Her excellent voice carries across the room despite the lack of a microphone.

And about the only thing missing from Macaroni Grill is macaroni (although the penne on the children's menu is called macaroni).

But there are plenty of pasta alternatives from the ubiquitous capellini (angel hair) al pomodoro ($7.50) to pastas with shrimp or salmon ($11.75 and $11.95) to my favorite here, seared tuna pieces with capers and olives on linguine ($13.95) with parsley, oregano and garlic.

One of the shrimp pastas with spinach, mushrooms, pine nuts and a lemon butter sauce ($7.25 at lunch, $11.95 at dinner) is a confirmed winner. And the shrimp and leek-stuffed ravioli effort ($7.25 at lunch, $11.75 at dinner) displays fairly soft dough wrappings with a handsome presentation enhanced by the yellow-toned saffron-lemon sauce flecked with chives.

Chicken dishes such as a cacciatore ($10.50) and a baby rack of lamb ($15.95) are handled well, so are the daily soups. Pizzas are average or above, and there's a nifty Italian-style nachos platter ($6.25) for sharing nibblers.

One day a sausage, polenta and peppers plate ($7.50 at lunch, $9.25 at dinner) had to be returned because the sausage was burned black underneath. Needless to say, the dish was fine once it came back.

Overall, the service here is pretty good, considering the large numbers of customers. Occasionally a staffer gets confused about wines and how to serve them, but for the most part, there aren't too many glitches.

Macaroni, like Milano's Italian Kitchen, proves that new-style Italian food can be above average in a chain concept, and by comparison, several notches above that of Olive Garden.

And, if nothing else, it'll cleverly conquer your senses before you even sit down to eat.

THE FACTS

The restaurant: Romano's Macaroni Grill.

Where: 4000 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks.

When: Open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, for dinner from 4 to 10 p.m. nightly, Friday and Saturday until 11 p.m.

Recommended items: Soups (Tuscan bread soup, cream of broccoli), Italian nachos, shrimp and leek ravioli, tuna puttanesca, chicken cacciatore, baby lamb chops, sausage and peppers with polenta.

Children's menu: Pizzas, macaroni (really penne) and cheese, fried or grilled chicken plate, ham and cheese sandwich ($3.95 each) includes a soft drink or milk and a chocolate sundae.

How much: Starters from 95 cents (salad with entree order) to $8.25, pastas and entrees from $7.50 to $17, desserts $3.25 or $3.95. Full bar. All major credit cards.

Wine list: It's on the back of the menu, 25 labels, eight by the glass, ranging from $13 to $29 per bottle, only five above $20. No vintages listed. A 1994 Banfi Col-di-Sasso sangiovese-cabernet sauvignon blend ($16) is a pleasant red wine.

Reservations: Limited call-ahead seating guarantees table within 15 minutes of arrival. Call [phone].

Our rating: Three Stars for food; Two and One Half Stars for service; Two Stars for wine.